The trading volume is dominated by stablecoins, and the last Friday of the year concludes with relatively quiet action in the year of extreme crypto turmoils.
2022, the year of one of the most severe crypto winters, is coming to an end. This year, the market witnessed events that no investor could have predicted in their wildest dreams.
It is the first time in Bitcoin history that all four quarters have been negative.
This year will be remembered by cryptocurrency enthusiasts for the much-anticipated Ethereum Merge as well as unexpected events such as the collapse of Luna, Three Arrow Capital, centralized lending protocols and exchanges, and, eventually, the world’s second-largest exchange, FTX. Let’s take a look at what happened on the last crypto Friday of 2022.
Given the holiday season, the crypto market was quiet on the last Friday of 2022. Most cryptocurrencies, on the other hand, have dressed in Santa’s favorite color – red.
The total crypto market cap is down 0.5% today, from around $758 billion to $754 billion, according to TradingView data. The Altcoin market (excluding Bitcoin and Ethereum) is down nearly 0.6% from $291.7 billion to around $290 billion. Bitcoin’s dominance is now 42.16%, a 0.06% decrease.
According to CoinMarketCap, the total volume of stablecoins is now $25.90 billion, accounting for 92.48% of the total crypto market 24-hour volume. USDT alone has a trading volume of $19 billion, which is nearly equal to the sum of Bitcoin and Ethereum trading volumes.
Bitcoin and Ethereum, the two most important cryptocurrencies, had a quiet day with little volatility. Bitcoin is down 0.7% from its opening price today, and Ethereum is down nearly 0.6% from its opening price. However, Solana had a volatile trading day.
Solana, once one of Alameda Research’s largest holdings, took a hit after the FTX group failed. Due to a series of negative developments, Solana’s price fell to $8 this week from a high of $11.5. However, since Thursday’s low of $8, the price has recovered more than 23%, and is currently trading at $9.95.
